The parallel structure. The repetition. The allusions to founding fathers and their words. The interaction of subject, audience, and speaker. The visual arguments—Clint Eastwood’s “invisible Obama.”
And that’s just one convention.
After the DNC, who will need a text to use with AP English Language?
Four years ago, the immediacy and relevance of rhetoric seemed very tangible to my AP students. Whether they liked Obama or not (or really, whether their parents did or not) his speeches provided a platform for the careful analysis of how an author gets his message across. Honestly, save Bush’s 9/11 speech, there wasn’t that much contemporary material to draw upon until then. Arguably, Obama brought back skilled political speech writing.
Now there seems to be much to choose from. One convention down and I could spend months on Rubio’s speech. Weeks on Clint Eastwood’s. And a long time on Romney’s.
As apolitical and unforgiving rhetorical analysis can be, what I think my kids will need to learn most is how to find a message and the author’s true purpose among star-spangled elocutions.
There is much to analyze, but where is the meaning? Are we dealing with truly empty rhetoric? With people saying whatever it takes to get elected? Where is the true meaning? And how can we find the meaning behind the pretty way it is said.
Colleague Jim Meredith blogged:
“Is it too much to ask for this campaign to be about real issues? Is it too much to ask for this campaign to be about the people? Is it too much to ask for politics to be a noble profession and the discourse it produces be civil?” http://jdmeredith42.edublogs.org/?p=86
I would add that not only is civility lacking, but so too is clarity.
My hope as a new school year begins is to arm a group of teenagers with the tools they need to truly be as David Joliffe recommends, citizen rhetors, who will be able to sift the gold nuggets as they pan through the pretty words for the kernels of truth.
Pretty words and snappy sentence structure should not obscure the message. As humans, we have fallen victim to this many times. Now is the time for words to have meaning and action and integrity.
Let’s spend less time shoring up rhetorical resources to make our party—whichever—seem stronger and righter.
Let’s uncover the truth.
Unconventional? Absolutely. The new normal? Hopefully not. Perhaps we can uncover the truth together.
I have four young voters in my family, two who will be voting in their first presidential election.
The three girls will vote pro choice. My son, the oldest, is confused by the rhetoric, and has already become distrustful enough with the process that he’s planning to abstain. I’m doing everything in my [limited] power to change his mind – not about who he will vote for, but that he participate.
I mention that my daughters will vote pro choice not because we’re a rabidly pro choice family, but to illustrate the emotional denominator to which their decision-making process has been reduced.
They feel unable to get past the legislation of their bodies to even consider or discuss any of the infinately more important issues on the table.
I’m sure you’ve seen the billboard out there with the message, “Obama supports abortion and gay marriage. Do you?”
These are the common denominator, emotionally-charges issues that the candidates want to conquer and divide on. And I’m sorry to report, in my family, they’ve succeeded.